Juggling the Bear: Assessing NATO Enlargement in Light of Europe's Past and Asia's Future
Abstract
This paper focuses on the expansion of NATO through Russian membership. Many dismiss Russian membership as a political nonstarter due the perceived high economic and political costs. This paper argues that the US should advocate Russian membership into NATO as a means to counter internal threats to Russian democratization, construct an effective security architecture for post-Cold War Europe, and address emerging challenges to Asia-Pacific security, notably, China's rise as a regional "peer competitor", and its burgeoning relationship with Russia. US support for Russian NATO membership would combat the threats to Russian democratization. These threats include the steady expansion of organized crime, the popular nationalist-authoritarian political elite, and an increasingly discontented military. Russian membership would also provide an "air of security" in which the fledgling democracy can take flight. If the US truly intends to go beyond the Cold War barriers it entrenched, it must lead Europe in the construction of a genuine pan- continental security structure that includes Russia as a full member.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 1999
- Accession Number
- ADA365336
Entities
People
- David S. Fadok
Organizations
- United States Air Force Academy